Berlin High School head coach Nicole Arguin, center, has the water bucket dumped on her after Berlin defeated Derryfield School, 4-0, in the Div. III championship field hockey game hosted at Bedford High School Sunday. (Mark Bolton/Union Leader)

Derryfield entered the game 17-0 and unscored upon, but Berlin gained the momentum when Dandeneau scored just 3:11 into the game.

"The pressure was all on Derryfield," said Berlin head coach Nicole Arguin. "They were the No. 1 seed, undefeated and had not allowed a goal all season. They were expected to win."

Derryfield coach Lenny McCaigue, whose team outscored its previous 16 opponents 74-0, said the goal Sunday was to win the title.

"Our focus today was not getting another shutout, it was simply to win the state title," he said. "The shutout streak we had going was just a by-product of the season. Give Berlin credit. They kept beating us to the ball and they caught us on our heels."

Berlin, which won its first state title since 2005, was making its sixth state championship final since 2004.

"We pride ourselves on being a very competitive program," said Arguin. "Our girls work hard and today they were determined to win the state title."

Berlin (16-1-1) and Derryfield didn't meet during the regular season, but Arguin had a plan in place against the Cougars.

"We knew Derryfield's strength was up the middle," said Arguin. "We just told our girls to attack up the sidelines and keep the ball away from their top players in the middle."

Berlin took a 2-0 lead 7:30 into the contest when Kayleigh Eastman fired a shot past Derryfield netminder Kate Johnson, who played very well with seven saves.

"The first goal gave us confidence and we managed to keep the momentum the rest of the game," said Arguin. Dandeneau made it 3-0 at the 22:36 mark and Jenna Arguin capped off the scoring with 5:01 left. Chelsey Caron and Jill Williams each had an assist in the win. Berlin freshman goalie Julie Downs was outstanding with seven saves as Berlin captured its 12th season shutout.

Despite the loss, Derryfield seniors Lainee Shaughnessy, Berklee Vaillancourt, Theo O'Leary, Colbi Vaillancourt, Zoe PiSierra and Kate Johnson leave the program with three championship titles and one state runner-up title.